While he was upset, the mainframe crystal processor of his crystal suit sent out familiar beeps, which were exactly the secret signals that Li Yao and Li Jialing had agreed upon.

Overjoyed, Li Jialing hurried to swim deeper into the ocean where the signals came, only to discover that Li Yao was rising from a deep undersea crack in a crystal suit.

“Brother Yao, where have you been? I was truly worried when I was waiting!”

Li Jialing said, half in complaint and half in expectation, “I’ve been dawdling at the edge of the battlefield as you instructed, and I did not approach the center of the battlefield at all. But wouldn’t it be inappropriate if we slack off from the beginning to the end? Why don’t we go to the center of the battlefield and join the party? At the very least, we should be able to see which expert finally kills the supervillain Dongfang Wang and rescues His Majesty. It is perhaps going to be a fierce battle that can be seen only once in a lifetime!”

“Well, if that’s what you want, there will be no need to go to the center of the battlefield.”

Li Yao said solemnly, “I have already killed the supervillain Dongfang Wang and rescued His Majesty by the way.”

“…”

Dumbfounded for a moment, Li Jialing grumbled, “What… What the heck? Didn’t you say that you were going to the deeper part of the ocean to enjoy some fresh air?”

“Yes, that was exactly what I intended. However…”

Li Yao was of a mind to scratch his head despite his helmet.

“However, as it happens, I ran into Dongfang Wang in the undersea crack and met His Majesty who was heisted by him. I know that it is very hard to explain and that you want to spit in my face badly from your viewpoint, but that is exactly what happened. It’s not like I had a choice!”

Li Jialing took a deep, deep breath and looked around Li Yao, asking, “Then, where is His Majesty?”

“Here.”

Li Yao waved his Cosmos Ring.

“What!”

Greatly surprised, Li Jialing immediately realized what was going on. He stammered, “His—His Majesty has died?”

“Yes, it was a few days ago. But he was not killed by Dongfang Wang but… Forget it. This is not the place for such a conversation. Follow me. There’s something that is very unbelievable but deeply affects you. I need you to stay calm!”

Li Yao dragged Li Jialing by the hand and swam to the deeper part of the ocean. Very soon, they encountered a crystal suit that was as gorgeous as a mermaid at the entrance of the trench.

The person inside the crystal suit was naturally Long Yangjun.

“Somebody’s here!”

Li Jialing was surprised. “Who is it?”

Li Yao replied, “Dongfang Mingyue.”

“What!”

Li Jialing was greatly scared again. It occurred to him that he would have a heart attack sooner or later if he hung around his mysterious “brother” Li Yao more often. He stammered again, “Isn’t… Isn’t she the most evil and sordid expert under Dongfang Wang’s command, the president of the Association of Demon Hunters, and the she-fiend whose traces are mysterious and whose Cultivation is immeasurable?”

“Exactly?”

Li Yao led Li Jialing to swim to Long Yangjun. “But don’t be scared. This she-fiend has been domesticated by me.”

“What’s going on exactly?”

Li Jialing did not even know how he should feel right now. Finding it hard to believe, he asked, “How is it possible? You’d been away for two hours at most, but you suppressed Dongfang Mingyue, slew Dongfang Wang, and stole the remains of His Majesty? How did you manage it?”

“Very simple.”

Li Yao said, “When I met Dongfang Mingyue, I immediately released my dominant air and said to her solemnly that the trend of the Imperium’s renewal was like an overwhelming tide, and that whoever went along with it would thrive but whoever went against it would die. Now that Dongfang Wang had died and the Dongfang family was about to fall apart, if she were to insist on her follies, not only would she die miserably, she would also be forever cursed by the future generations.

“When I said to her righteously, and Dongfang Mingyue thought about it carefully, she naturally found my points enlightening and persuasive. Then, daunted by my overwhelming strength, and since she had been admiring ‘Vulture Li Yao’ for a long time, knowing that she was no match for me at all, did she have a second option except to surrender to you?”

Li Jialing: “… If possible at all, I really do not want to believe you.”

Li Yao: “The fact is right before our eyes. This is exactly the power of the brand of ‘Vulture Li Yao’ that I have carefully established recently. Now that I have accidentally made my personal image too magnificent and awe-inspiring, the great men in the universe are all coming to me and begging to work for me. I feel rather disturbed too!”

Gritting his teeth, Li Jialing swam to Long Yangjun in silence and observed the crystal suit on her body in suspicion, only to discover that it was indeed an ultimate product of unknown materials and doubtlessly only affordable for the real top-tier experts. He couldn’t help but feel even more shocked.

“You are Li Jialing?”

Long Yangjun giggled and sent a telepathic thought to Li Jialing. “Don’t be nervous. Just call me Sister Mingyue.”

“Sister… Mingyue…”

Li Jialing’s brain seemed to have been bombarded by dense bolts of lightning, and he couldn’t have been more astounded. Did such a casual tone really come from the leader of the “Association of Demon Hunters”, the arguably strongest organization of special agents of the Imperium? Even if she were indeed forced to surrender, she shouldn’t have been so relaxed!

Looking at Long Yangjun and then at Li Yao, the young man had ten thousand question marks emerging from his eyes.

“Take it easy.”

Li Yao said, “This… Sister Dongfang Mingyue has been touched by Brother Yao’s personal charisma. She has decided to do the right thing and be a good person from the bottom of her heart. Therefore, you can trust her as unconditionally as you trust Brother Yao.”

Thinking for a moment, Li Jialing said, “But I do not trust Brother Yao unconditionally!”

“…”

Li Yao coughed and said, “There’s only limited time for us now. Let’s not talk about the unimportant details. All in all, Li Jialing, you must be prepared, because we will tell you the most shocking and devastating news. You must hang in there!”

Li Jialing looked at the… unbelievable combination again and stammered, “Is there anything that can be more shocking than what I’ve seen and heard just now?”

“Yes. According to our accurate analysis and meticulous deduction, it is very possible that your mother is haunted by a ghost. A thousand-year-old ghost, no less.”

Li Yao said solemnly, “That is Blackstar the Great Wuying Qi, the founding emperor of the Imperium of True Human Beings!”

Li Jialing was lost for words. Another thousand question marks popped up in his eyes. Biting his lips and thinking for a long time, he finally managed to ask, “I-I don’t know how I should react now. What are you talking about exactly? Haunted by a ghost? What is that? How did you learn it?”

“There is a term about the spectral Cultivators named ‘old grandpa’. I think you must know it, don’t you? It’s basically a seasoned ghost who tails you all the time and who offers you enlightenment in training or treasure-hunting. Of course, some of the malicious ‘old grandpas’ try to possess a new body so that they can be reborn, or to manipulate the living people as if they are puppets.”

Seeing that Li Jialing nodded, Li Yao went on, “We suspect that your mother has run into such a condition, except that her old grandpa is rather unique and indescribably tough, because it is Blackstar the Great!

“Most of your mother’s strength and resources came from the Empyreal Transcendence Sector, where the Supreme Emperor was buried. Blackstar the Great, in the meantime, had also been to the Supreme Emperor’s mausoleum and eventually perished there before his death. Your parents should be the first persons who accidentally trespassed on the Empyreal Terminus Sector and touched Blackstar the Great’s remaining soul. But since your father was an emotionless guy from the Covenant Alliance in the beginning, which was perhaps not suitable for manipulation and possession, Blackstar the Great eventually chose your mother as his ‘host’!”

Li Jialing was rather astounded. He asked in a hurry, “How did you learn it, Brother Yao? How confident are you with your theory?”

“Before his death, Dongfang Wang told me and Long… Dongfang Mingyue a lot of things. By combining what I knew with her intelligence, we have found the astonishing truth.”

Pondering for a moment, Li Yao said, “As for the accuracy, let me put it this way. Based on the known information, it’s about fifty-fifty. However, I can guarantee with 100% confidence that it is true!”

Li Jialing was rather confused. “Wait. If the possibility is only fifty percent according to the intelligence, why are you certain that the queen… my mother is really haunted by a ghost?”

“If I did not observe and participate in the matter, it would’ve ended either well or badly, and the odds would’ve been fifty-fifty.”

Li Yao analyzed solemnly, “However, now that I’ve been involved in this mysterious swirl, the whole thing will only escalate toward the worst direction, and the truth will only be the worst possibility. Therefore, your mother must’ve been haunted by the thousand-year-old ghost that is Blackstar the Great. I’m absolutely positive!”

Li Jialing’s previously golden face turned pale, and he almost cried out. “What-What are you talking about, Brother Yao? You must save my mother!”

“Of course, I also want to save the queen and destroy the unparalleled monster that is Blackstar the Great.”

Li Yao heaved a sigh and said, “However, according to my careful evaluation, it occurs to me that my Cultivation right now seems to be slightly lower than Blackstar the Great’s, and I might not be a match for him if I am not in my best combat state. Therefore, for safety reasons, we better make thorough plans.”

Li Jialing was almost really crying when he grabbed Li Yao by his wrist and asked, “What do you mean by ‘we better make thorough plans’?”

“I mean that we need to wing it. Let’s just run away now. In any case, I do not want to confront the queen right now. Who knows whether or not an invisible old ghost is observing me malevolently behind her when I am bragging about myself in front of her? It is too creepy!”

Li Yao declared quickly, “Also, you must hide yourself, too! I have just analyzed the situation with Dongfang Mingyue just now. If your mother is truly haunted by Blackstar the Great, and Blackstar the Great is up to a certain world-shifting scheme, you must be the key to the scheme, and you are absolutely much more important than me.

“Therefore, you must not fall into the hands of the queen or Blackstar the Great. You are perhaps the only person that can help us reverse the situation!